The Progressive Context: What Obama Can't Do for the Progressive Movement.

In my review, Taking Back America in the books section of the Journal, I discussed a conference on the subject of political framing and propaganda sponsored by George Soros and featuring an article by George Lakoff as well as a discussion of George Orwell's seminal work. (Lot's of George's!) Anyway, it seems like the Rockbridge Foundation has just disbanded. A very interesting statement of their purposes and an evaluation of what the founders accomplished and what they believe is still to be done can be found here.

A statement of what they were reaching for was written in an article by Lakeoff and Joe Brewer, Why Voters Aren't Motivated by a Laundry List of Positions on Issues.

There is a faulty view of voting behavior – widely held by political strategists on the left – that people already know what they want. All you have to do is conduct a poll to find out where they stand on the issues, then build a platform of positions that accords with the polls, and they will vote for you. Missing from this view is the importance of cognitive policy – the ideas necessary to understand what the issues are and how they should be addressed. It is the ability to understand where a candidate is coming from that makes public support possible. Endorsement quickly follows when this understanding combines with a sense of shared values.

There are two kinds of policy: cognitive and material. Material policies are familiar: they outline what is to be done in the world. For example, the details of a health care plan, or a plan for getting out of Iraq. Material policies each have a cognitive dimension, often unconscious and implicit. This includes the ideas, frames, values, and modes of thought that inform the political understanding of the material policy. For example, consider the following questions: Do all Americans, just by their very existence, deserve health care, just as they deserve police protection? How does health care differ from health insurance? How these questions are answered plays a crucial role in what the material details of health care policy should. ...

Joe Brewer and Evan Frisch have created a new forum for continuing the ideas of how progressives need to address the fundamental values that underlie debates on particular issues or particular candidates. What Obama Can't Do for the Progressive Movement. The following excerpt from his article summarizes the direction he proposes that progressive's must follow in order to achieve the changes they desire.

Toward a New Vision

Progressives need to know all of this if we are to succeed. Simply electing Obama and expecting him to save the day is guaranteed to disappoint, something he has been saying all along. And the world is depending on us to get our act together. Conservative ideas are driving us off the climate cliff, tearing away the life-supports of our economy, and miring us in endless surges of aggression against fellow humans who happen to reside on foreign soil. We need to transcend this nightmare scene with a new vision of hope and solidarity.

As the conventional media (and many bloggers on the left) focus on the superficial differences between Clinton and Obama, we are calling on anyone who cares about the future of America and the world to look deeper at the problems we face.

Here's what we need to do:

Recognize insights about the human mind that tell us what it means to be a political actor. The Rockridge Institute may not be around any longer, but the need to update our political strategies remains as glaring as ever. It is absolutely crucial that progressives learn the valuable lessons from cognitive science, especially the role of frames in everyday thought and the importance of authenticity and trust in the selection of political leadership.

Learn how our politics have come to be the way it is now. We will be better equipped to create a new politics when we know more about the old one. This great overview (Parts I, II and III) by Sara Robinson reveals exactly how conservatives have come to dominate political thought and recommends strategies to reclaim it for ourselves.

Challenge the dominant institutions of the past and call for new ways of organizing to face the challenges of the future. This includes the creation of institutions devoted to the creation of a progressive cognitive infrastructure. Our values and principles remain largely unarticulated, while those of conservatives continue to dominate public discourse unchallenged. The Rockridge Institute stands as a test bed for thinking about how to do this. There is much to learn about what worked (and what didn't) as we seek ways to bring our collective efforts into greater synergy in the future.

Redefine the nature of civic engagement to be more participatory, interactive, collaborative, and contemplative. (The groundbreaking work just released by our Rockridge colleague Glenn W. Smith on the Promise of Popular Democracy offers a fitting coda for this effort.) The elite control of politics is draining the lifeblood of democracy and failing to call upon the ingenuity of our people. The challenges are huge and the solutions require more of us than simply changing a few light bulbs.

Articulate the progressive vision so that progressives everywhere can recognize the common ground we all share. Our vision is based in the human capacity to care for one another and act on that care. We are much more than an assortment of "special interest groups" waiting to be micro-targeted.

Create a new progressive infrastructure that embodies our ideals and values. This includes a cognitive infrastructure - the ideas, values and modes of thought that express the progressive vision. Simply churning out more policy proposals and statistical analyses without taking into account what people understand the situation to be will leave the populace bored, confused, and distant from the political process.
The progressive movement is ripe for change. We are better organized and more engaged than ever before. After years of conservative rule, there is a growing recognition that the country is firmly stuck on the wrong track, and a growing yearning for a new kind of politics. And, when the media finally acknowledges that Obama is the nominee, we all have a part to play in the process of transforming a nation.

It is time to roll up our sleeves and get to work.